A shallow Magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck under land 18 kilometer from Göksun in Türkiye in the morning of Saturday September 23rd, 2023. Another nearby country is Syria.
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Earthquake Summary
The earthquake struck on land in Türkiye, 18 kilometer (11 mi) southwest of Göksun in Kahramanmaraş. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 7 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
| Date and Time: | Sep 23, 2023 11:22 (Istanbul Time) - Sep 23, 2023 08:22 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 18 km SW of Göksun, Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye. Coordinates 37°53'59"N 36°21'32"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 4.5 Detected by 36 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.052 . |
| Depth: | 7 km (4 mi) A very shallow depth. |
| Tsunami Risk: | Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake, it appears to have occurred under land with a magnitude not strong enough to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here. |
Nearby towns and cities
2 countries can be found within 300km of the epicenter of this earthquake: Türkiye and Syria .
The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Göksun in Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye. Göksun is located 18 kilometer (11 mi) southwest of the epicenter.
Multiple major population centers exist within 300km of the earthquake that struck today. Adana is located 137 km to the southwest. Gaziantep is located 130 km to the south-east. Aleppo is located 202 km to the south-southeast.
An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 18 km (11 mi) NE from epicenter |
Göksun Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye. |
| 61 km (38 mi) SE from epicenter |
Kahramanmaraş Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye. |
| 62 km (39 mi) NE from epicenter |
Afşin Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye. |
| 63 km (39 mi) SSW from epicenter |
Kadirli Osmaniye, Türkiye. |
| 69 km (43 mi) SW from epicenter |
Kozan Adana, Türkiye. |
| 81 km (50 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Elbistan Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye. |
| 83 km (52 mi) E from epicenter |
Çağlayancerit Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye. |
| 91 km (57 mi) WNW from epicenter |
Yahyalı Kayseri, Türkiye. |
| 92 km (57 mi) S from epicenter |
Osmaniye Osmaniye, Türkiye. |
| 93 km (58 mi) NW from epicenter |
Develi Kayseri, Türkiye. |
| 94 km (58 mi) SW from epicenter |
İmamoğlu Adana, Türkiye. |
| 95 km (59 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Pazarcık Kahramanmaraş, Türkiye. |
| 106 km (66 mi) S from epicenter |
Erzin Hatay, Türkiye. |
| 108 km (67 mi) SSW from epicenter |
Ceyhan Adana, Türkiye. |
| 113 km (70 mi) E from epicenter |
Gölbaşı Adıyaman, Türkiye. |
| 113 km (70 mi) NW from epicenter |
Talas Kayseri, Türkiye. |
| 115 km (71 mi) NW from epicenter |
Hacılar Kayseri, Türkiye. |
| 118 km (73 mi) S from epicenter |
Dörtyol Hatay, Türkiye. |
| 120 km (75 mi) NW from epicenter |
Kayseri Kayseri, Türkiye. |
| 123 km (76 mi) NE from epicenter |
Darende Malatya, Türkiye. |
| 130 km (81 mi) SE from epicenter |
Gaziantep Gaziantep, Türkiye. |
| 134 km (83 mi) E from epicenter |
Besni Adıyaman, Türkiye. |
| 137 km (85 mi) SW from epicenter |
Adana Adana, Türkiye. |
| 147 km (91 mi) S from epicenter |
İskenderun Hatay, Türkiye. |
| 147 km (91 mi) W from epicenter |
Niğde Niğde, Türkiye. |
| 148 km (92 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Kilis Kilis, Türkiye. |
| 156 km (97 mi) S from epicenter |
Kırıkhan Hatay, Türkiye. |
| 158 km (98 mi) SSE from epicenter |
I‘zāz Aleppo, Syria. |
| 158 km (98 mi) W from epicenter |
Bor Niğde, Türkiye. |
| 161 km (100 mi) SSE from epicenter |
‘Afrīn Aleppo, Syria. |
| 161 km (100 mi) SE from epicenter |
Nizip Gaziantep, Türkiye. |
| 165 km (103 mi) WNW from epicenter |
Nevşehir Nevşehir, Türkiye. |
| 169 km (105 mi) E from epicenter |
Adıyaman Adıyaman, Türkiye. |
| 169 km (105 mi) SW from epicenter |
Tarsus Mersin, Türkiye. |
| 173 km (107 mi) SE from epicenter |
Birecik Şanlıurfa, Türkiye. |
| 178 km (111 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Malatya Malatya, Türkiye. |
| 182 km (113 mi) S from epicenter |
Reyhanlı Hatay, Türkiye. |
| 189 km (117 mi) S from epicenter |
Antakya Hatay, Türkiye. |
| 194 km (121 mi) SW from epicenter |
Mersin Mersin, Türkiye. |
| 199 km (124 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Al Bāb Aleppo, Syria. |
| 199 km (124 mi) E from epicenter |
Kâhta Adıyaman, Türkiye. |
| 202 km (126 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Aleppo Aleppo, Syria. |
| 208 km (129 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Ereğli Konya, Türkiye. |
| 208 km (129 mi) SE from epicenter |
Manbij Aleppo, Syria. |
| 211 km (131 mi) WNW from epicenter |
Aksaray Aksaray, Türkiye. |
| 213 km (132 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Sivas Sivas, Türkiye. |
| 220 km (137 mi) S from epicenter |
Idlib Idlib, Syria. |
| 230 km (143 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Şanlıurfa Şanlıurfa, Türkiye. |
| 236 km (147 mi) NW from epicenter |
Kırşehir Kırşehir, Türkiye. |
| 252 km (157 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Yozgat Yozgat, Türkiye. |
| 260 km (162 mi) E from epicenter |
Siverek Şanlıurfa, Türkiye. |
| 264 km (164 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Elazığ Elazığ, Türkiye. |
| 268 km (167 mi) S from epicenter |
Latakia Latakia Governorate, Syria. |
| 269 km (167 mi) N from epicenter |
Tokat Tokat, Türkiye. |
| 272 km (169 mi) WNW from epicenter |
Şereflikoçhisar Ankara, Türkiye. |
| 284 km (176 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Alaca Çorum, Türkiye. |
| 288 km (179 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Karaman Karaman, Türkiye. |
| 292 km (181 mi) S from epicenter |
Şūrān Hama, Syria. |
| 300 km (186 mi) E from epicenter |
Ergani Diyarbakır, Türkiye. |
Shaking reported by 3 people
People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 3 people have reported shaking in 3 places, all within Turkey.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.
Places with most reports:
- Gaziantep, Gaziantep, Turkey: 1 person.
- Kayseri, Kayseri, Turkey: 1 person.
- Polateli, Kilis, Turkey: 1 person.
8 Aftershocks detected
This main shock was followed by 8 smaller aftershocks. A 3.5 magnitude earthquake hit 56 mins later 6 km (4 mi) north-east of this earthquake.
Before this earthquake struck, 8 smaller foreshocks occurred. A 3.8 magnitude earthquake hit 2 days earlier nearby.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 3.0 |
2 days earlier Sep 21, 2023 03:30 (Istanbul Time) | 98 km (61 mi) ENE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.8 |
2 days earlier Sep 21, 2023 20:17 (Istanbul Time) | 95 km (59 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 2.5 |
1 day earlier Sep 22, 2023 07:41 (Istanbul Time) | 23 km (14 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 2.5 |
1 day earlier Sep 22, 2023 10:43 (Istanbul Time) | 21 km (13 mi) N from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 2.6 |
22 hrs earlier Sep 22, 2023 13:27 (Istanbul Time) | 83 km (51 mi) SSE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.0 |
17 hrs earlier Sep 22, 2023 18:40 (Istanbul Time) | 10 km (6 mi) N from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 2.5 |
10 hrs earlier Sep 23, 2023 00:54 (Istanbul Time) | 92 km (57 mi) ESE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 2.5 |
5 hrs earlier Sep 23, 2023 06:21 (Istanbul Time) | 11 km (7 mi) N from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 4.5 |
Sep 23, 2023 11:22 (Istanbul Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 3.2 |
2 mins later Sep 23, 2023 11:24 (Istanbul Time) | 12 km (7 mi) NE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.5 |
56 mins later Sep 23, 2023 12:18 (Istanbul Time) | 6 km (4 mi) NE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 2.7 |
5 hrs later Sep 23, 2023 16:39 (Istanbul Time) | 5 km (2.9 mi) N from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.0 |
16 hrs later Sep 24, 2023 03:34 (Istanbul Time) | 4 km (2.2 mi) NW from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.1 |
23 hrs later Sep 24, 2023 09:56 (Istanbul Time) | 99 km (62 mi) S from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 2.5 |
2 days later Sep 25, 2023 12:56 (Istanbul Time) | 9 km (6 mi) N from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 2.9 |
2 days later Sep 25, 2023 14:51 (Istanbul Time) | 35 km (22 mi) NE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.2 |
2 days later Sep 25, 2023 17:27 (Istanbul Time) | 15 km (9 mi) NE from Main Shock. |
More earthquakes coming?
Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.
The chance that a significant earthquake like this one is followed by an even larger earthquake is not so large. On average, scientists estimate a 94% chance that a major earthquake will not be followed by an even larger one. It is still adviced to be aware of this risk
Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).Earthquakes like this happen often in the region
Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since August 24th, 2023, when a 4.8 magnitude earthquake hit 163 km (101 mi) further east-northeast. An even stronger magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck on February 6th, 2023.
In total, 252 earthquakes with a magnitude of 4.5 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 14 days.
Tsunami very unlikely
While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.
Tsunami Risk Factors
| Factor | Under Sea? | MAG-6.5 or stronger? | Shallow depth? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Explanation | Almost all tsunami's are caused by earthquakes with their epicenter under sea or very near the sea. However stay cautious in coastal areas as earthquakes on land may cause landslides into sea, potentially still causing a local tsunami. | Under MAG 6.5: Very unlikely to cause a tsunami. MAG 6.5 to 7.5: Destructive tsunami's do occur, but are uncommon. Likely to observe small sea level changes. MAG 7.6+: Earthquakes with these magnitudes might produce destructive tsunami's. |
Most destructive tsunami's are caused by shallow earthquakes with a depth between 0 and 100km under the surface of the earth. Deeper tsunami's are unlikely to displace to ocean floor. |
| This Earthquake | Not this earthquake. This earthquake appears to have struck on land far from any coast. |
Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 4.5. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 7 km (4 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 21/11/23 12:28 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000kxls
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20230923_0000065
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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